1. A game played with rackets and a light ball by two players or two pairs of players on a rectangular court, as of grass, clay, or asphalt, divided by a net. Also called lawn tennis.
2. Court tennis.

[Middle English tenetz, tenyes, court tennis, from Anglo-Norman tenetz and Old French tenez, pl. imperative of tenir, to hold, from Latin tenēre. See detain.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.